Historic Venue In Orlando, Fla., Installs EAW KF740 Line Array

EAW in Whitinsville, Mass., reports that Orlando, Fla. sound reinforcement company Heavier Than Gravity designed and installed a stereo P.A. system that features seven EAW KF740 enclosures on each side in The Beacham, an historic venue that has been part of Orlando’s nightlife since the early 1920s. The Beacham has been restored as a live performance venue; it holds 1,250 music fans, and is now paired with The Social, a smaller 300-seat club next door.

The stage at Orlando’s Beacham nightclub is flanked by two EAW KF740 line arrays

The EAW KF740 enclosures are supported by eight EAW SB1002 Large Format Flyable Subwoofers arrayed in a mono block below the stage, four EAW JF80z Compact Full-Range Loudspeakers as lip fills on the stage, and four EAW MK5396 2-Way Full-Range Installation Loudspeakers for mezzanine and upper-balcony fills. The main systems and delays use two EAW UX8800 Digital Signal Processors, while the monitor mix makes use of two more. There are also eight EAW MicroWedge12 (MW12) stage monitors, two MicroWedge15 (MW15) stage monitors and two MicroSub stage monitor subwoofers. Powersoft amplifiers provide power to the system.

Jeff Kenney, owner and designer at Heavier than Gravity, says, “The initial thought was to go with one of the small-format line array systems that are out there now. But when you look at the kinds of music that are coming to clubs in the area—electronica, hip-hop, heavy metal—it’s clear that smaller systems like that are not going to cut it; they just don’t have the meat and potatoes you need to make that kind of music work."

Kenney also helps keep the club running as production manager for regional promoter Insomniac Events. “In terms of size, price point and power handling, the KF740 is the only box in its class,” Kenney continues. “I remember one of the first shows there was DJ Rusko, and he told me he was ‘scared of the amount of sound in the room.’ And he liked to play it on 10. It’s a fantastic system and everyone who’s been here, onstage or on the floor, says it’s the best P.A. they’ve ever heard.”